Hungarian Cabbage Roll Casserole

Hungarian Cabbage Roll Casserole is a casserole my family has made from the early ’80s. Our Hungarian Cabbage Roll Casserole recipe uses a filling of ground meat and rice and a thick tomato sauce flavored with sauerkraut sour cream and then baked to perfection.

The original recipe came from my parents’ recipe card collection and originally was actual  Hungarian cabbage rolls. My dad was making dinner and decided he did not want to be bothered by making a bunch of rolls. He decided to chop the cabbage and make a few changes to the cooking method. The ingredients are the same, just not stuffed in a roll.

 

This  Hungarian Cabbage Roll Casserole was a game-changer in our household. Unless my mom was cooking, we no longer had cabbage roll duty of rolling countless cabbage leaves around the filling. It was simplified and tasted pretty much just as good as the rolls.

I prefer the casserole over the rolls because I love cabbage, and it seemed to have more cabbage. Have I told you how much I love cabbage? I would eat it weekly if my family let me make it more often. It’s delicious and so healthy!

 

 

For this recipe, I use a specific combination of ingredients made from a blend of quality ground pork, lean ground beef, rice, a thick tomato sauce flavored with sauerkraut. The ingredients are all easy to find in your local markets.

 

INGREDIENTS LIST FOR HUNGARIAN CABBAGE ROLL CASSEROLE

• One large head of cabbage -Look for a firm, unblemished head of cabbage

• One large onion–  Use yellow or white onions for optimal flavor

• Butter– Use quality unsalted butter

• Ground lean Beef– You will want to purchase 93/7 for best results

• Ground pork– Do not use  ground sausage

• Quick cook rice –  Parboiled rice can be substituted

• Kosher salt– Table salt may be substituted

• Black Pepper– I use a coarse ground black pepper

• Hungarian Paprika –  Do not use smoked paprika or Mexican paprika

• Saurkrate– Rinse and drain before use

• Tomato Puree– I use an organic brand

• Sour cream -This will be used in the sauce

 

 

 

 

The equipment you will need to make the Hungarian Cabbage Roll Casserole is minimal, and you probably have all of it on hand already. If you have a cutting board, can opener, sharp knife, paring knife,  Large saucepan, skillet, spatula, large casserole dish, and hot pads, you are good to go.

 

EQUIPMENT NEEDED FOR HUNGARIAN CABBAGE ROLL CASSEROLE

Cutting board – to chop yellow onions and slice  the cabbage

Paring knife– to core the head of cabbage

Sharp kitchen knife– to slice the head of cabbage

Large saucepan– to parboil cabbage part of the way

Small saucepan– to pre-cook the rice 1/2 way.

Skillet – to lightly brown pork, lean beef, and onions

Can opener- to open the tomato puree

Spatula- or wooden spoon to combine ingredients

Large casserole dish– to bake the recipe

Hot pads or mitts- to remove casserole from oven

 

 

This beautiful American-Hungarian recipe is super simple to make and tastes lovely. If you enjoy American-Hungarian Cabbe Rolls, this recipe is a winner for dinner. 

 

TIPS FOR MAKING THE RECIPE

1. Gather all the equipment and ingredients needed for the recipe.

2. Immediately start boiling your salted water for the cabbage.

3. Complete all prep work while water is boiling. Such as slicing and dicing.

4. Saute the onions, brown the meat, cook the rice part way while waiting.

5. Do not over boil cabbage. It only needs 4-5 minutes.

6. Do not forget to preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

 

 

 

 

Suggested recipes: 

• Italian Cabbage Rolls are deliciously filled cabbage leaves with Italian Sweet Sausage, lean ground beef, rice,  Parmigiano-Reggiano, shallots, and fresh herbs.
• Deliciously filling Stuffed Cabbage Roll Soup has all the delightful flavors of Classic Stuffed Cabbage Rolls, without all the work.
• Cabbage Sausage and Kluski is a simple to make yet, deliciously flavorful Pennsylvania Dutch Recipe made from fried green cabbage, lightly browned bratwurst sausages, bacon, garlic, onions, lots of butter, and Polish Kluski Noodles. 

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